peen
Penis.
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peep of day
earliest light of dawn
Peep-o'-Day Boys
The Irish Protestant faction in Ulster of about 1786; they were precursors of the Orangemen (#.v.), and were active from the period mentioned; so called because they used to visit the houses of their Roman Catholic opponents (called Defenders') at "peep of day" searching for arms or plunder.
peeper
A spying glass; also a looking-glass. Track up the dancers, and pike with the peeper; whip up stairs, and run off with the looking-glass. CANT.
peepers
Eyes. Single peeper, a one-eyed man.
peepers
Eyes; "painted PEEPERS," eyes bruised or blackened from a blow.—Pugilistic.
peeping tom
A nick name for a curious prying fellow; derived from an old legendary tale, told of a taylor of Coventry, who, when Godiva countess of Chester rode at noon quite naked through that town, in order to procure certain immunities for the inhabitants, (notwithstanding the rest of the people shut up their houses) shly peeped out of his window, for which he was miraculously struck blind. His figure, peeping out of a window, is still kept up in remembrance of the transaction.
Peers of the Realm
The five orders of Duke, Marquess, Earl, Viscount, and Baron (see these names'). The word peer is the Latin pares (equals), and in feudal tunes all great vassals were held equal in rank.
peery
Inquisitive, suspicious. The cull's peery; that fellow suspects something. There's a peery, tis snitch we are observed, there's nothing to be done.
peery
Suspicious, or inquisitive.
peg
Old Peg; poor hard Suffolk or Yorkshire cheese. A peg is also a blow with a straightarm: a term used by the professors of gymnastic arts. A peg in the day-light, the victualling office, or the haltering-place; a blow in the eye, stomach, or under the ear.
peg
Brandy and soda-water. A PEG by which to pull oneself up again. Also, a shilling.—Scotch.
peg down
to define or identify something precisely
peg it
To run; to leg it; to scarper.
peg out
To mark (a territory or area) with pegs.
peg the needle
to reach the highest point on a scale or measurement
peg trantum's
Gone to Peg Trantum's; dead.
peggers
People who constantly stimulate themselves by means of brandy and soda-water.
pegge’s
(Samuel) Anecdotes of the English Language, chiefly regarding the Local Dialect of London and Environs, 8vo. 1803-41.
pego
The penis.
pego
The penis of man or beast.
pegs
The stumps.
pegtops
The loose trousers in fashion some years back, small at the ankle and swelling upwards, in imitation of the Zouave costume.
pell-mell
Tumultuously, helter skelter, jumbled together.
pellet moulding
shaping or forming something into a compact mass
Peloponnesan War
The beauty of Lais the Second so excited the jealousy of the Thessa- lonian women that they pricked her to death with their bodkins. She was the contemporary and rival of Phryne and sat to Apelles as a model. Demosthenes tells us that Lais sold her favours for 10,000 (Attic) drachmas (about £300).
pelt
A heat, chafe, or passion; as, What a pelt he was in! Pelt is also the skin of several beasts.
pelt of the dog
Recognized English idiom; full definition pending editorial review.
pen and ink
Written or printed words
pen and pencil
Writing or drawing instruments
pen picture
A vivid and detailed description of someone or something
penalty box
A designated area for players who have broken rules
penang-lawyer
A long cane, sometimes carried by a footman. PENANG-LAWYERS are also bludgeons which are carried by all classes in Singapore.
pencil in
To tentatively schedule or plan something
pencil of rays
All the rays that issue from one point or can be formed at one point; so called because a representation of them has the appearance of a pointed pencil.
pencil whip
to quickly and carelessly complete a task or document
pencil-fever
A supposititious disease among racehorses, the preliminary symptoms of which show that an animal has been pretty considerably "milked." PENCIL-FEVER sets in when, despite the efforts of the "marketeers," a horse can no longer be kept at a short price in the lists, through his actual condition being discovered, and when every layer of odds is anxious to write his name down. This disorder is also called "milk-fever," "market-fever," and other suggestive names.
pendent feathers
Those behind the toes. Petty singles. The toes. Pounces. The claws.
penguin
A nun.
Peninsular War
The war carried on, under the Duke of Wellington, against the French in Portugal and Spain, between 1808 and 1814.
penis fly trap
The vagina.
Penitential Psalms
The seven psalms expressive of contrition — viz. the vi, xxxii, xxxviii, li, cii, cxxx, cxlni. From time immemorial they have all been used at the Ash Wednesday services; the first three at Matins, the 51st at the Com- mination, and the last three at Evensong.
penman
A forger.
penny a liner
The old name for a con- tributor to the newspapers who was not on the staff and used to be paid a penny a line. As it was to his interest to "pad" as much as pos- sible the word is still used in a contemptuous way for a second-rate writer or newspaper hack.
penny dreadfuls
An expressive term for those penny publications which depend more upon sensationalism than upon merit, artistic or literary, for success.
penny farthing
The nickname of what was also called the "ordinary" bicycle that came into vogue in 1872. The front wheel was much larger than the back wheel, sometimes being as much as 5 ft. in diameter while the rear was only 12 in. The drive was directly on the front wheel, the seat being above it and set only slightly back from the perpendicular of its axle.
penny fish
A name given to the John Dory {a v ) because of the round spots on each side left by St. Peter's fingers.
penny for your thoughts
A request to know what someone is thinking
penny gaff
A shop turned into a temporary theatre (admission one penny), at which dancing and singing take place every night. Sometimes rude pictures of the performers are arranged outside to give the front a gaudy and attractive look, and at night-time coloured lamps and transparencies are displayed to draw an audience. Zest is given to these entertainments by the fact that now and again the police make raids upon the houses, and carry off both actors and spectators. These places are also called "dukeys,"
penny gaff
A concert or crude music-hall entertainment for which the entrance charge is one penny. See GAFF.
penny in the fusebox
a small problem that causes much larger issues
penny pincher
Someone who is extremely frugal and careful with money
penny readings
Parochial entertainments, consisting of readings, music, etc., for which one penny admission is charged.
penny wedding
a social gathering where guests bring their own food and drinks
penny weddings
Weddings formerly in vogue among the poor in Scotland and Wales at which each of the guests paid a small sum of money not exceeding a shilling. After defraying the expenses of the feast, the residue went to the newly married pair, to aid in furnishing their house.
penny wise and pound foolish
Said of one who is in danger of "spoiling the ship for a ha'porth of tar," like the man who lost his horse from his penny wisdom in saving the expense of shoeing it afresh when one of its shoes was loose; hence, one who is thrifty in small matters and careless over large ones is said to be penny wise.
penny wise, pound foolish
Being extremely frugal in small matters but wasteful in larger ones
penny-a-liner
A contributor of local news, accidents, fires, and scandals to a newspaper; a man not regularly "on the paper;" one who is popularly believed to be paid for each contribution at the rate of a penny a line, and whose interest is, therefore, that his articles should be stuffed with fine words and long sentences. This wonderful person, to whom so much is daily attributed, is now generally called a LINER.
penny-wise and pound foolish
Saving in small matters, and extravagant in great.
pennyworth
An equivalent. A good pennyworth; cheap bargain.